Tag Archive for: caffeine

While the role of systematic reviews becomes more fully appreciated, the quality of systematic reviews is inconsistent. As the field of systematic reviews evolves, there are an increasing number of frameworks and approaches that can be used to conduct such comprehensive research.  When conducting systematic reviews there are questions about how to: develop a protocol and PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome) questions, execute a search strategy, manage data, grade the literature, evaluate and manage biases, and ensure transparency of the process. This session will address these components by using a large multi-endpoint systematic review of caffeine which followed the framework of the IOM Report "Finding What Works in Health Care: Standards for Systematic Reviews”, as a case study.

There continues to be interest within the scientific community in what is a safe level of caffeine intake and if certain populations should have modified recommendations.  Since the 2003 release of the highly cited and valued review by Nawrot et al., “Effects of caffeine on human health”, there have been more than 5,000 articles on the effects of caffeine in humans published, highlighting the need for an update to this body of work.

The Systematic Review of the effects of caffeine on human health took into account the challenges of including nutrition and toxicological evidence. The health endpoints reviewed for caffeine are: acute toxicity, behavior, bone and calcium homeostasis, cardiovascular health, developmental and reproductive toxicity, and pharmacokinetics in three healthy populations.  The session will present the lessons learned and will emphasize the efforts taken to ensure transparency and rigor that allow for the achievement of a high level of scientific quality.  Specific areas of focus will include challenges with identifying and integrating caffeine intakes by level of adversity (e.g., physiological or clinical endpoints), and difficulties in applying standard risk of bias tools across outcomes and endpoints.

Although this session will focus on the Caffeine Systematic Review as a case study, the process, findings, and lessons are relevant to nutrition researchers and professionals who utilize systematic reviews.

8:00 – 8:30 Breakfast

Welcome
Alison Kretser, MS, RD, IAFNS

The Caffeine Landscape – framing the need for the Systematic Review 
Dennis Keefe, PhD, FDA
Video

Striving for the Gold Standard in the Systematic Review Process
Esther Myers, PhD, RDN, FAND, EF Myers Consulting
Video

The Methodology and Challenges of the Caffeine Systematic Review
Daniele Wikoff, PhD, ToxStrategies
Video

Q&A
Moderated by Dennis Keefe, PhD
Video

10:10 – 10:25 Break

General Results of the Systematic Review
Daniele Wikoff, PhD, ToxStrategies
Video

Results of Specific Health Endpoints– Scientific Advisory Board Members

• Harris Lieberman, US Army – Behavior - Video 
• Charles O’Brien, University of Pennsylvania – Behavior - Video (See Lieberman for pdf)
• Jennifer Peck, PhD University of Oklahoma – Reproductive & Developmental Toxicity - Video 
• Daniele Wikoff on behalf of Jeffrey Goldberger, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine– Cardiovascular - Video 
• Connie Weaver, PhD, Purdue University – Bone & Calcium - Video 
• Milton Tenenbein, MD, University of Manitoba – Acute & Pharmacokinetics - Video 

Panel Discussion with the Caffeine Systematic Review Project Team Members Video
Moderated by Dennis Keefe, PhD
Panel includes: 6 of the 7 Scientific Advisory Board members, Daniele Wikoff of ToxStrategies (Scientific Review Team), Alison Kretser of IAFNS (Oversight Committee)

Overall Conclusions - presented by Daniele Wikoff
Full session playlist